Story Search Results

Advanced Search

There are so many ways to search the solutions journalism stories in this database. Explore our searchable fields:

Search Results

You searched for: -

There are 199 results for your search. View and Refine Your Search Terms

No Longer ‘Under the Radar,' Louisiana Black Fathers Group Looks to Expand ‘Dads on Duty' as a National Response to School Crime

Linda Jacobson

December 15, 2021 |

The 74 |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Shreveport, Louisiana

Dads on Duty is a group of roughly 40 fathers who routinely spend time at a Shreveport, La. high school to connect with students one-on-one and steer them away from gang culture. The school has not had any large fights since the dads began visiting, and their success has been partially attributed to the fact that several of the group's members were already involved in the school community and building relationships with students.

Read More
Go to Original Story
To clean up East Baltimore, this mentor shores up buildings – and youths

Dwight A. Weingarten

December 13, 2021 |

The Christian Science Monitor |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Baltimore, Maryland

A community organization focuses on the wellbeing of young people in order to prevent violence. Members are mentored and taught martial arts by founder, Munir Bahar. Young residents also help clean up their neighborhood, hold food drives, and lead anti-violence marches.

Read More
Go to Original Story
The priests navigating Colombia's conflict zones

Megan Janetsky

December 12, 2021 |

BBC |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Colombia, Chocó Department

Shielded by cultural deference to the Catholic church, Colombian clergy venture into conflict zones to document the clashes, provide aid, and mediate disputes between civilians and armed guerrilla groups. Their efforts have helped response organizations access difficult-to-reach areas and drawn renewed attention to the crises.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Can green spaces help curb Philly's gun violence problem?

Tamala Edwards

December 06, 2021 |

WPVI-TV |

Broadcast TV Talk Show |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia's LandCare program has cleaned and greened 12,000 vacant lots, removing trash and other signs of blight. A study showed that the program led to a large drop in violent crime in the cleaned-up areas. A U Penn researcher who led that study and a community leader whose Philly Peace Parks in west and north Philadelphia have developed a more welcoming, healthy environment talk about the emotional impact such programs have on residents when they see that their neighbors care about the neighborhood. Says organizer Pili X, "It does something to the heart and soul of people."

Read More
Go to Original Story
Could Greater Investment in Greening Help Reduce Gun Violence?

Emily Previti Stephanie Marudas

December 02, 2021 |

Kouvenda Media |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The city lot where Sanctuary Farm now grows vegetables that it distributes free to the community once was strewn with trash and drug paraphernalia, hardly a hospitable place for the neighborhood kids who played in it. Now it's a lush garden and safe hangout for kids who help with the gardening, do art projects, or just play. It's similar to a broader Philadelphia program that "cleaned and greened" thousands of lots and made a measurable decline in violence. Sanctuary's impact on crime isn't known for sure, but some neighbors say the farm is a positive influence.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Without help, Philly kids who lost family to gun violence will 'self destruct.' So this grandmother gave them a getaway trip.

Helen Ubiñas

November 22, 2021 |

The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia Media Network) |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The group Moms Bonded By Grief went beyond the support-group work it has done for years for survivors of gun violence homicide victims to take 50 children and their mothers and grandmothers to a Poconos Mountains water park and resort. The long-weekend respite from Philadelphia's relentless gun violence included group therapy for children and adults, enabling them to talk about topics that often get buried or ignored. The excursion, funded by donations, is planned to be repeated next summer.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Creating a safer 6th Street: How another U.S. city transformed its entertainment district

Kevin Clark

November 11, 2021 |

KXAN-TV |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Arlington, Virginia

Arlington police and its entertainment-district bars and restaurants addressed rising violence and other crime by collaborating to prevent crime rather than banking on police alone to solve it through more arrests. Where bar and restaurant owners in the past feared getting in trouble if they told police about incidents at their venues, the Arlington Restaurant Initiative opened communication and training of employees. Crime in the district declined by two-thirds in the first four years. Austin faces similar challenges and could learn from Arlington's example.

Read More
Go to Original Story
This anti-violence strategy has shown results. But Kansas City hasn't invested in it

Hurubie Meko

November 10, 2021 |

The Kansas City Star |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Kansas City, Missouri

Aim4Peace is the city of Kansas City's violence prevention program using the Cure Violence model of "violence interrupters" to mediate disputes before they turn deadly. Founded 12 years ago, the program's fairly robust startup funding gave it 18 outreach workers in a neighborhood that enjoyed relatively few homicides at the time. After grants ran out, the city failed to increase its own spending on the program, and so it remains a small pilot program, reduced in size and blamed for its inability to do more. Other cities spend far more, and have much more success to show for it.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Communities explore out-of-the-box mentorship programs to reduce gun violence

Patty Santos

November 10, 2021 |

KSAT-TV |

Broadcast TV News |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Richmond, California

Richmond's Operation Peacemaker Fellowship pairs mentors with young people at risk of violence, paying the youth a stipend if they meet particular goals toward a more stable and safe life. The mentors are former gang members and others with criminal records who earn the trust of their clients through their experiences and independence from the police. Other cities have adopted this model or similar approaches to preventing gun violence. One study said the Richmond program may have contributed to a significant decline in violence in that city.

Read More
Go to Original Story
Lessons from a 'violence interrupter' as shootings continue to ravage Chicago

Deena Zaru

November 09, 2021 |

ABC News (American Broadcasting Company) |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

Programs like UCAN Chicago use "violence interrupters" to mediate disputes before they turn violent and to connect people at risk of violence to the services that will give them a chance at a more stable, peaceful life. Decades after CeaseFire Chicago established this street-outreach approach to violence prevention, the work has been conducted mainly by former gang members and formerly incarcerated people with the credibility to reach the right people. Research on its effectiveness is mixed but promising, though the resources don't come close to meeting the need. This story profiles one Chicago worker.

Read More
Go to Original Story